There will be a dedication ceremony in Bradley County on June 13 at 2 p.m. for Tennessee’s newest Civil War-related historical roadside marker.
The marker commemorates the difficult time during the Civil War when much of southern Bradley County lay between Union lines at Cleveland and Confederate lines at Dalton. During this period, citizens' homes and businesses were vandalized and robbed by both pro-Union and pro-Confederate forces who took advantage of the prevailing lawlessness.
The marker’s location at 7723 Dalton Pike S.E. is near the home site of War of 1812 veteran Joseph Lusk II, who though more than 70-years-old at the time, courageously defended his home in early 1864 against a group of outlaws attempting to steal his mules. He shot and killed one of the group. Soon after, his home was burned in retaliation.
Speakers at the dedication include Sam Elliott, immediate past chairman of the Tennessee Historical Commission; Jim Ogden, chief historian with the Chickamauga-Chattanooga National Military Park; Mary Ann Peckham, executive director of Tennessee Civil War Preservation Association; Dr. Bryan Reed, history professor and chair of the Humanities Department at Cleveland State Community College and Melissa Woody, vice president of tourism of the Cleveland/Bradley County Chamber of Commerce.
The event is free and open to the public.